The Case for mHealth Mobile communications for better health outcomes Mitul Shah 10.28.09
Jan 14, 2016
The Case for mHealth Mobile communications for better health outcomes
Mitul Shah10.28.09
© 2008United Nations Foundation
Vodafone Foundation
•1 million die from effects of malaria each year
•25% of children in developing countries are underweight and undernourished
•1 woman dies each minute from pregnancy-related causes
•2.5 Million people newly infected with HIV/AIDS each year
•57 countries have critical shortages in health care workers• Total deficit of 2.4 million health
professionals worldwide
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Photo: UN Foundation/Nothing But Nets
Urgent Need to Improve Health in Developing World
© 2008United Nations Foundation
Vodafone Foundation
mHealth Defined
mHealth (n) – the delivery of health care services via mobile communication devices
Addresses pressing public health issues
•Tracking outbreaks of communicable diseases
•HIV/AIDS treatment & prevention
•Maternal health care
•Children’s health
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Photo: DataDyne Group
© 2008United Nations Foundation
Vodafone Foundation
Defining mHealth Within the Context of eHealth
•eHealth: Using information and communication technology (ICT)—such as computers, mobile phones, and satellite communications—for health services and information.
•mHealth: Using mobile communications—such as PDAs
and mobile phones—for health services and information.
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© 2008United Nations Foundation
Vodafone Foundation
•Growing ubiquity of mobile phones is central to the promise of mobile technologies for health•64% of all mobile phone users are in the developing world•By 2012, half of all individuals in remote areas of the world will have mobile phones
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Potential of mHealthThe Promise of Mobile Technologies for Health
Mobile Phones reach further into developing countries than other technology and health infrastructures
© 2008United Nations Foundation
Vodafone Foundation
Mobile Technology in the Developing World
By 2012, 50% of all individuals in remote areas of the world will have mobile phones
80% of the world’s population lives in an
area with mobile phone coverage (expected to rise to 85% by 2010)
80%
50%
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Source: GSMA Source: GSMA
© 2008United Nations Foundation
Vodafone Foundation
Patient Health Outcomes Effectiveness Gains
• Reductions in delays to patients receiving care
• Improved clinical outcomes
Health Systems Outcomes
Efficiency Gains
• Services delivered at reduced cost, increased speed
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mHealth Improves OutcomesBenefits in Patient Health & Health Systems Outcomes
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Photo: UN Foundation/Nothing But Nets
© 2008United Nations Foundation
Vodafone Foundation
mHealth: Key Applications
• Education and Awareness• SMS/text messaging in support of public health and behavioral change
campaigns.
• Data Collection and Record Access• Applications using mobile devices to enter and access patient data.
• Monitoring and Medication Compliance• Maintain care giver appointments or ensure medication regime
adherence via one-way or two-way communications on mobile devices.
• Disease and Emergency Tracking• Use mobile devices to send and receive data on disease incidence,
outbreaks and public health emergencies.
• Health and Administrative Systems• Allow access between mHealth applications and central health
systems.
• Analysis, Diagnosis and Consultation• Support diagnosie and treatment through access to medical
information or staff via mobile devices.
Photo: UN Foundation / Nothing But Nets
© 2008United Nations Foundation
Vodafone Foundation
Meeting Health Needs Through a Broad Array of Applications
mHealth field is dynamic and range of applications being designed is constantly expanding.
Key applications for mHealth in developing countries are:
• Education and Awareness
• Remote data collection
• Remote monitoring
• Communication and training for healthcare workers
• Disease and epidemic outbreak tracking
• Diagnostic and treatment support
© 2008United Nations Foundation
Vodafone Foundation10
Impact of mHealth Projects
•Preliminary studies demonstrate mobile technology improves efficiency of healthcare delivery
•Figure 4 illustrates early results from mHealth programs in developing world
© 2008United Nations Foundation
Vodafone Foundation11
mHealth: Key Players & Incentives
Player Incentive
Health Care ProviderMore efficient and effective delivery of health services
NGO Advance organizational mission, attract funding
Foundations Advance organizational mission
Government More efficient health care provision, effective government
Equipment ProviderDevice revenue generation, improved brand recognition
Service ProviderRevenue from service fees, increased subscriber base
Application Solutions Provider
Revenue from additional applications license fees
Content Management Increase in volume of readership or revenue
Platform Provider Revenue from sales
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© 2008United Nations Foundation
Vodafone Foundation
Growing momentum to use mHealth to advance UN Millennium Development goals:
• Evidence of benefits increasing: Improved effectiveness of health
care delivery Increased efficiency of health care
systems
• Cross-sectoral alliances are growing
• Existing projects scaling
• New projects being launched
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Growing Momentum
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mHealth provides a singular opportunity to powerfully contribute to sustainable
development
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Photo: UN Foundation/ Nothing But Nets
Thank you